Glenn Beck

One TV news show about which I was fond has now begun to sour for me, it is the O'Rielly Show. His smug and superior manner grates, and his slogan "The Spin Stops Here" is no longer true. It may be that his success (top news show for a number of years) has gone to his head. I find that I make no effort to see his show, will watch it if it is on, am not reluctant to turn to something else. There is a news show that has captured my interest, the Glenn Beck Show on Fox News. Glenn looks like the Pillsbury Dough Boy and has a face that contorts and stretches much like Jim Carry. His sense of humor is showing through much of the show. At first glance he appears to be a court jester, donning weird attire, or showing a prop, or doing something outrageous. It is done to enable people to remember what he is talking about because he is very serious about the content of his show. His mannerisms must be seen to be believed and his ability to get a point across is without peer. He has a book out called "Common Sense" which he wrote because he was moved by the original "Common Sense" written by Thomas Paine. He believes we live in perilous times and is trying to get the American people to wake up to what is happening around them. He attempts to expose ACORN for what it is, funded by Communists and extreme in it's goals. He does this in an entertaining way. Turn him on and see for yourself. He is on Fox News.

Geezers

While walking from the parking lot toward the Church last Sunday, I saw two, old men walking together, both had their heads lowered, both wore shorts and tennis shoes. The shorts of one man looked like the bottom of a pyjama set, the other had thin shorts that looked like it had been washed over two hundred times, they waved so easily in the light breeze. Upon entering the Narthex, I noticed another older man wearing the type of pants that are worn by Afghan men. He was wearing very bright, multi-colored, athletic shoes, they looked new. His pants and shirt were black so the shoes drew the eyes immediately to his feet. As we rose for the beginning of the Mass, I noticed a few other older men wearing shorts. What is going on? Why are older men wearing shorts to Church? What has made athletic shoes acceptable? Ushers are still wearing suits, the Priest is still wearing his finery, the Choir is all well dressed. I pondered this while sitting (instead of praying) and resolved to check out more of the congregation once I was up again. Once up, I looked around and found more men with shorts but I could not see their shoes. Nearly all the men so dressed were old and should have known better. Could this be the male answer to "The Red Hat Society?" I conclude that once reaching geezer status, what they wear is no longer important.

Minimum Wage

On July 24 the minimum wage will change from $6.55 to $7.25 and it will of course effect an increase in unemployment. The job loss will fall on those who are young and are just entering the workforce because they are the ones that mostly earn the minimum wage. For those that retain their job it is an improvement in their situation. However, it keeps pressure on business to look closer at their workforce and look for ways to lower payroll costs. There are a number of ways this is done: reduce the workforce, get more out of each worker, obtain labor saving devices, work the better employees on overtime. If you were running a business what would you do to get your payroll into line with your business plan? Would you raise prices to cover the wage hikes? Or, would you merely absorb the hikes and take less profit from the business. What do you do if you are only breaking even?

Czars

We hear much about Obama's Czars: how many he has, how it bypasses the Congress, how the People do not know the extent of their authority or that they have never heard of the person. If I were Obama, coming from a major background of community organizing and having almost no managerial experience, I would want all the help I could get. Other presidents have come into the office with enough background to get by with the usual structure. Obama knows his limitations and is taking steps to plug up what he does not know. With Czars, he merely asks the relevant Czar to cover the area and report to him. At least he will get some expert information in any given area rather than rely in his imperfect background and experience. If I were in his situation I would be doing the same thing. Lets cut him some slack.

John Tuttle

Another person from the McDonald's group is John Tuttle who's physical description was best described by Washington Irving's description of Ichabod Crane. John is seventy-six and served in the Korean war on the USS Oriskany, an aircraft carrier, and learned the trade of Lithography. He is now a retired preacher from the Evangelical Church here in Green Cove Springs. He graduated from High School and has been studying the Bible ever since. He says while he was in the Navy he did many things of which he is not proud, even smoked and drank, and when he got out he came to his senses and lived a righteous life. When I first met John, it was easy, after he said something, to make funny comments that made others laugh. At the time he would merely give a tight lipped smile and ignore the laughter. As we discuss the events of the day, he is fond of telling us what is in the Bible and where the vast majority of people are going wrong. At these times he quotes "Revelations" and says we are in the "end times". He says it is all there if we will just take the time to read it. One day I asked him: What is your most favorite book in the Bible? I had expected him to say Revelations but he surprised me when he said Matthew. I asked why, and he said: "Everything Christ wanted to pass to us on is in that book." During a discussion he happened to say: "You Catholics believe that you are the only ones that are going to heaven." There were three of us Catholics in the group at the time and I quickly called for a vote on who believed that. One Catholic, Bert, said he believed it and I was surprised by that. Bert said he heard it all the time at Church. I asked Bert if he understood what was meant by the doctrine "Body of Christ" and he said he never heard the term. John had that big wide grin on his face as if he had proved Catholics believed they were the only ones who will get to heaven. John had a stroke a while back and now has one leg that is frozen stiff, yielding a walk like a man on a wooden leg. He says he gets up eight times a night to pee. I told him he should be taking a drug to shrink his prostate and he answered that he was taking one for it. He is a gentle person and exudes wisdom and authority in his conversation. It disturbs him that there are so many people that do not want to work because he is convinced that God gave man work to aid in his salvation. He does laugh along with us and is not upset when he is the butt of a joke.

9.5%

The percentage of jobless is now at 9.5% and is on it's way to 14% before the end of the year. This can be seen in the PBI (Private Business Investment) decline that is now taking place. For every 5% decline in the BPI there is a corresponding 1% increase in the number of jobless. Do yoou know of anybody that is willing to start a new business at this time? Do you know any business person that is looking to expand his business? This is a number that has always interested me due to the many times that I have been out of work. It is very hard to get a job while unemployment is high. My resume typers were Pat and Paulette and both of them got tired of my asking for minor changes, required for the industry I was searching or the type of job I believed to be available. To those that already have jobs, keep them. Do what is necessary to retain them. A recession is so much easier to get through with a job. Without a job savings deplete, energy depletes and hope depletes.

Tea Party

Yesterday, July 2, Jacksonville held a Tea Party at "The Landing" in downtown Jacksonville. I attended and can report the following: There were about 1,000 people there whose age were mostly in the 50's and 60's. There were some young people there but they seemed to have been haulled there by an older person, consequently they appeared to be somewhat disinterested. The event began with four young girls singing the "Star Spangled Banner" followed by a recitation of the "Pledge of Allegiance." Some introductions were made about some dignitaries, my Representative, Cliff Starnes, sent somebody to represent him as did Mel Martinez, one of our State's Senators. Then a number of quotes from Thomas Jefferson were read by a black man. The crowd roared it's approval. A few doctors talked about what nationalized health care would mean - in essence, rationing and poorer care. The black fellow from time-to-time would shout out FREEDOM!, just as Mel Gibson did in the movie "Braveheart", and the crowd would shout back just as loudly, FREEDOM!. A different leader asked: "Does congress speak for you?" and the crowd shouted back "NO!." "Is your congress listening to you?" again "NO!" "Will you remember? and this time it shouted, YES! I saw about five, large, yellow flags that said "Don't Tread On Me" which included the large coiled rattle snake. There were many well made signs and even more poorly made signs. If a camera appeared people would hold up their sign. Some signs I remember: "Keep your hands off my health care", "Stop spending my grand children's money", "Listen to the people", "Freedom from tyranny", "Shrink the Government", "No more deficits", "Term limits for all Washington aristocrats", Big spenders, resign now", "No more bailouts", "I'll keep my money, you keep your change", "Taxed Enough Already" and my favorite, "Drink the tea before Obama pees in it." There were some signs attacking Mayor Payton of Jacksonville because he has proposed a 1.5 increase in property millage to cover the shortfall of a 56 million dollar deficit. It is clear that the people want him to work with the money he has and to cut spending if there is not enough money. The rally was held at 5:30 PM but it was still hot. Many people brought their own chairs but I, along with most, had to stand. The event lasted about 1.5 hours, a long time to stand. Just before it ended I walked into the air conditioned, concession area in order to sit and get cooled off. It surprised me that there were so few people that did the same thing I did. (Could not hear the speeches from inside.) I saw nothing about the War, nothing about race, nothing about specific congressmen, nothing about abortion, nothing about gays, nothing about Democrats, nothing about Republicans. These people were upset about government in general.